We’ve got a new feature and a new contributor to introduce tonight on Sunset. To begin with, the contributor’s name is Jessica – she’s coming to us from New Music Collaborative, where she consistently keeps the world up to date on indie, folk, pop, and rock music. She has a major soft spot for the banjo, but also melts when she hears accordions, mandolins, fiddles, saws, rockin’ pianos, the moog, trumpets, hand claps, and whistling in songs.

What’s most important is that she loves music. So much so, that she’s challenged herself to do the following, and has extended a gracious offer to me to participate in the fun. Yall ready for this?

100 Bands.

100 Reviews.

365 Days.

That’s right. We’re concert junkies, gig whores, live music addicts, whatever you want to call it. The bottom line is, we go to a lot of concerts. We wanted a way to keep track of them all, and we wanted a challenge. On September 1st, 2010, we decided that we wanted to see 100 live bands within a year. As part of this challenge, we have taken an oath to be open to all types of music and all venues. We accept the fact that 1/4th of the year ahead will include dealing with ringing ears, too many PBRs, staying up way too late on weeknights, hanging out with people who wear too much flannel and grow ironic beards, and other concert shenanigans. We are excited for this adventure; come along for the ride and read reviews on 100 different bands and their live performances. There are only three simple rules:

1. No repeat bands2. Picture evidence must be provided3. Brutal honesty is required

From here on out, there will be a link to a page on the menu bar, just below the Sunset in the Rearview image, called Live Reviews. In addition to featuring each review on the homepage, you can keep track of our journey on that page.